Kansas Basketball: Best seasons under Roy Williams

Roy Williams is retiring after 33 years of coaching basketball. He spent 15 seasons as the head coach of Kansas basketball. 

Roy Williams put together one heck of a resumé during his head coaching career in the NCAA, which spanned over three decades. While he’ll definitely be remembered most for his years with North Carolina, Williams had a lot of success as the head coach of Kansas basketball, where he coached from 1988-2003.

While Williams’ three NCAA titles came as the head coach of the Tarheels, he came close with the Jayhawks, making it to four Final Fours and two title games during his time in Lawrence. He finished his KU coaching career with a 418-101 record and went 175-49 in conference play.

Williams’ departure was controversial for KU fans, as he reiterated that he’d be staying with the Jayhawks, even after the North Carolina job became vacant. Of course, we all know that Williams left the second time the job opened up three years later and while it was understandable to be upset at the time, the Jayhawks have done just fine with Bill Self leading the charge.

What were Roy Williams’ best seasons as Kansas basketball’s head coach?

As mentioned above, Williams led the Jayhawks to four Final Four appearances and to two championship games as well, though KU was never able to get over the hump and win a title under Williams.

Here are Williams’ best seasons from his Kansas years:

5. 1992-1993

Two years after falling short of a title, Williams got KU back to the Final Four after they went 29-7 in the regular season and finished with an 11-3 Big 8 record. While not making it back to the biggest game of the year was disappointing, Kansas fans still had faith in Williams and hoped he’d be able to get them a championship.

4. 1990-1991

Williams led the Jayhawks to the National Championship Game in just his third year at the helm, making Kansas fans feel very good about their chances with him as the head coach. The team went 27-8 during the regular season while notching a 10-4 record in the Big 8. Unfortunately, they lost in the final game of the year but fans definitely felt good about Williams as their coach.

3. 2002-2003

In what would be Williams’ final year with Kansas, he led the Jayhawks to the final game of the season, only for them to come up short. They’d be the National Runners-Up for the second time in Williams’ tenure and the season saw a lot of accomplishments. KU went 30-8 and 14-2 in conference play en route to their National Championship Game appearance.

2. 1996-1997 

From a win-loss standout, this was Williams’ best season with the Jayhawks. Kansas finished the year with just two losses on their resumé and looked like a team that should have won it all and cut down the nets at the end of the NCAA Tournament. Unfortunately, Williams and his Jayhawks were bounced from the tournament in the Sweet Sixteen. KU finished 34-2 with a 15-1 conference record in KU’s first year in the Big 12.

1. 2001-2002 

Kansas was on fire in Williams’ second to last season with the program, finishing 33-4 and going a perfect 16-0 in conference play. This season’s team was an offensive juggernaut, scoring 100 points in double-digit games throughout the season and making opponents look downright silly. What transpired was a trip to the Final Four, their first in nine seasons, but unfortunately, they just missed out on making the title game.

Roy Williams was yet another tremendous coach for Kansas basketball and it was unfortunate that he never got them a title during his 15 seasons in Lawrence. It was good to see him have success with his alma mater and winning three titles with the Tarheels. What a career he’s had!